Tire cornering stiffness estimation system and method

• US 9,739,689 B2
• Filed: 11/21/2014
• Issued: 08/22/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/21/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
• Original Assignee: Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
• Inventors: Singh, Kanwar Bharat
• Primary Examiner(s): Larkin, Daniel S
• Application Number:
  US14/549,845
• Publication Number:
  US 20160146706A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,005 Days
• Field of Search: 73 8, 73146
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 2019/004 Tyre sensors other than for detecting tyre pressure
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 23/00 Devices for measuring, signalling, controlling, or distributing tyre pressure or temperature, specially adapted for mounting on vehicles; Arrangement of tyre inflating devices on vehicles, e.g. of pumps or of tanks; Tyre cooling arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: B60C 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/00 Arrangements for adjusting wheel-braking force to meet varying vehicular or ground-surface conditions, e.g. limiting or varying distribution of braking force by changing number of effective brake cylinders in power brake systems B60T17/10
• CPC Class Codes: B60T 8/1725 Using tyre sensors, e.g. Sidewall Torsion sensors [SWT] for tyre pressure and temperature detection B60C23/00
• CPC Class Codes: B60W 40/10 related to vehicle motion
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 17/02 Tyres
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 3/56 Investigating resistance to wear or abrasion

Abstract

A tire cornering stiffness estimation system and method includes multiple tire-affixed sensors mounted to a supportive vehicle tire for operably measuring tire-specific parameters and generating tire-specific information relating tire pressure, temperature, wear state, tire identification and tire loading. One or more accelerometer(s) are mounted to the hub supporting the tire to generate a hub accelerometer signal. A model-based tire cornering stiffness estimator is included to generate a model-derived tire cornering stiffness estimation based upon the hub accelerometer signal adapted by the tire-specific information.

Claims

1. A tire cornering stiffness estimation system comprising:

a vehicle supported by at least one vehicle tire mounted to a hub, the vehicle tire having a tire cavity and a ground-engaging tread, and the tire having a plurality of tire-specific measureable parameters, the tire-specific measureable parameters including a load estimation for the one vehicle tire, a temperature of the one vehicle tire, an air pressure within a cavity of the one vehicle tire, and a tire identification identifying the one vehicle tire;

a plurality of tire-affixed sensors mounted to the tire operably measuring the tire-specific measureable parameters to generate tire-specific information;

at least one accelerometer mounted to the hub and generating a hub accelerometer signal to provide a wear estimation for the ground-engaging tread of the one vehicle tire;

a tire cornering stiffness estimator employing a model operable to generate a tire cornering stiffness estimation based upon the hub accelerometer signal and adapted by the tire-specific information.

2. The cornering stiffness estimation system of claim 1, wherein the tire cornering stiffness estimator operably conducts a frequency domain spectral analysis of the hub accelerometer signal.

3. The cornering system estimation of claim 1, wherein the hub accelerometer signal is provided to the tire cornering stiffness estimator from a vehicle CAN-bus.

4. A tire cornering stiffness estimation system comprising:

a vehicle supported by at least one vehicle tire mounted to a hub, the vehicle tire having a tire cavity and a ground-engaging tread, and the tire having a plurality of tire-specific measureable parameters, the tire-specific measureable parameters including a load estimation for the one vehicle tire, a temperature of the one vehicle tire, an air pressure within a cavity of the one vehicle tire, and a tire identification identifying the one vehicle tire;

a plurality of tire-affixed sensors mounted to the tire operably measuring the tire-specific measureable parameters to generate tire-specific information;

at least one accelerometer mounted to the hub and generating a vehicle CAN-bus hub accelerometer signal to provide a wear estimation for the ground-engaging tread of the one vehicle tire;

a tire cornering stiffness estimator employing a model operable to generate a tire cornering stiffness estimation based upon the vehicle CAN-bus hub accelerometer signal and adapted by the tire-specific information.

5. The cornering stiffness estimation system of claim 4, wherein the tire cornering stiffness estimator operably conducts a frequency domain spectral analysis of the vehicle CAN-bus hub accelerometer signal.

6. A method of estimating tire cornering stiffness comprising:

equipping a vehicle with at least one vehicle tire mounted to a hub, the vehicle tire having a tire cavity and a ground-engaging tread, and the tire having a plurality of tire-specific measureable parameters, the tire-specific measureable parameters including a load estimation for the one vehicle tire, a temperature of the one vehicle tire, an air pressure within a cavity of the one vehicle tire, and a tire identification identifying the one vehicle tire;

affixing a plurality of tire-based sensors to the tire to operably measure the tire-specific measureable parameters and thereby generate tire-specific information;

mounting at least one accelerometer to the hub to operably generate a hub accelerometer signal to provide a wear estimation for the ground-engaging tread of the one vehicle tire;

generating from a tire cornering stiffness estimator employing a model a tire cornering stiffness estimation based upon the hub accelerometer signal and adapted by the tire-specific information.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising conducting a frequency domain spectral analysis of the hub accelerometer signal by the tire cornering stiffness estimator.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein further comprising obtaining the hub accelerometer signal from a vehicle CAN-bus.